


Nuits Sous la Lune

by Faeryam



Category: Beauty and the Beast (2017), Beauty and the Beast - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, F/M, Marriage, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Smut, all aboard the train to the trash can
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-11
Updated: 2017-07-08
Packaged: 2018-10-17 13:39:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10595124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faeryam/pseuds/Faeryam
Summary: In which Adam is eternally grateful to have human hands and can’t seem to keep them off of Belle.A series of one-shots chronicling Adam and Belle’s adventures of the intimate variety.





	1. The West Wing

**Author's Note:**

> Y’all, are we sure this was a movie for children? Adam/Beast in 1991 was a sweetheart. He and Belle looked at each other like they wanted to cuddle up by the fire and read a book. This 2017 couple is...something else. This is not your mother’s virginal Disney prince. So here you go. I couldn’t help myself. I made an account just to publish this, and I also made a Tumblr side-blog under the same name. 
> 
> These one-shots won’t be posted in chronological order, but they will all fit into one cohesive post-curse timeline.

They had been married for nearly two months, and Adam was becoming more confident in his ability to please his wife. During the long months of their engagement, he hadn’t imagined that his desire for Belle could grow any stronger, but here he was, more enraptured than ever.

Her pleasure was his drug, and he spent an embarrassing amount of time thinking of ways to maximize it. He studied her more closely than any book he had ever read. One thing he had noticed was that Belle’s enjoyment was more intense when she was on her front, bearing down with the weight of her body. She had also confided in him, with a hint of shame (which he quickly soothed), that she sometimes enjoyed feeling helpless in their couplings.

Adam had been pondering whether there was a way to combine these seemingly contradictory preferences. Loath to speak to Lumière about such matters, he finally allowed himself to think back over his past exploits and the illicit conversations that he’d had with his equally-debauched peers. He found that he was almost at peace with that chapter of his life. Belle had helped him see that he didn’t need to ignore _everything_ that he had been before the curse, though she couldn’t have known how much good her advice was about to do her.

That night, when they were lying in bed and she began to guide his hand down her naked form, he stopped her.

“Wait.” He moved off of her and she rose up on her elbows to fix him with a puzzled look.

“Would you like to try something?” He gave her a mischievous grin to let her know that she would enjoy the ‘something’ very much, and she answered him with an amused look when she understood.

“Alright.”

“Sit on the edge of the bed for a moment.” She scooted away, and he stacked several of the overly-stuffed pillows on the center of the mattress.

Belle’s eyes were questioning, and he shot her a crooked, wicked smile that he had learned would put her completely at his mercy.

“Lie over the pillows on your stomach” he directed, failing in biting back a smirk that told her he knew exactly what sort of effect he was having on her. Though her breathing was already shaky with arousal, she looked unsure. 

“What are you going to do?”

“Nothing we haven’t done before. I’m just going to touch you.” His voice was soft.

“There’s nothing ‘just’ about you touching me” she remarked with a hooded look, regaining her confidence at his reassurance. She knew that he would enjoy the battle for power as well as the compliment. She crawled over to the pillows.

Belle worried for a moment that the position would be too humiliating for her to enjoy herself properly. After all, it had only been a few weeks since their wedding night, the first time she exposed herself to him fully. They had performed this position without the pillows after she had shyly asked him about something from a book that Plumette had recommended, but that seemed different. If he wasn’t inside her, she would be completely on display to him.

She quickly thought through how it might feel to lie on the soft pillows and be fully available to him as he focused on her pleasure, and her breath caught as a sudden rush of heat flooded her body. Well then. Apparently it was worth trying.

Belle wiggled her body sensuously as she settled across the pillows, and she heard her husband groan in response. She smiled as she folded her arms.

She felt him join her in the center of the bed, and his voice came from above as he knelt there.

“Are you comfortable?”

“Yes.” She rested her head on her arms and took even breaths.

Adam could see that she trusted him, but he could still feel her apprehension, so he began by running his hands over the length of her body. He leaned forward to massage her shoulders, and his hands didn’t stop until they were on her thighs. She was already moaning and writhing by the time he moved over her backside, and Adam wondered how close he could get her to her climax without even touching her most intimate area. He was briefly tempted to continue until she was close and then take her just like this, but he had other plans.

“Now, my love, spread your legs a bit. Let me know if it’s uncomfortable.”

Belle put her weight on one knee so that she could scoot her leg out, and then alternated the movement.

The view made Adam feel lightheaded, but he noted that while he could easily slip inside of her at this angle if he wanted to, his immediate plans would prove more difficult.

“Hm. Another pillow, I think. Sit up for a moment.”

Belle used her elbows to push herself off the pillows and rise up onto her knees. She stretched her body as he placed yet another ridiculously puffy pillow onto the pile, and then he was back behind her. Her brow was still furrowed with curiosity, and he decided to give her a reward for her trust and patience. His arms unexpectedly wrapped around her. Adam’s hands traced the front of her body, starting with a brief massage of her breasts and ending at the widest part of her thighs, his fingers mere inches from the part of her that was already throbbing with need.

She attempted to buck backwards against him, and he let out a hearty, carefree laugh. He leaned his chin on her shoulder for a moment, angling the rest of his body away to avoid contact. She turned her head for a kiss, but he spoke instead.

“Back onto the pillows.”

Belle huffed, but she threw herself over the pillows with even more enthusiasm than before and spread her legs without being prompted.

“Your only job is to enjoy, and to let me know if the position is making you sore.”

He had already teased her enough, he decided, so he immediately brushed his hand between her legs. To his surprise, her body jolted from just that simple touch.

He experimentally repeated the motion several times, and her body trembled. When he stopped for a moment, she ground her hips against the pillows. Adam was glad she couldn’t see his smug grin. This was going to be fun.

He continued to touch her, gradually increasing the pressure and the range of his touch. She pressed her face against the bedding, but he could still hear the beautiful sounds she was making.

He pressed his left hand against her lower back firmly but comfortably, holding her body in position as his other hand took her higher and higher. She marveled at the fact that she was enjoying ceding control of her body.

It suddenly occurred to Adam that with Belle’s hips being tilted upwards by the pillows, he might be able to use another part of himself on her that he normally couldn’t manage when she was on her knees. When he sensed that she was close to the peak of her pleasure, he backed up and leaned forward, spreading his hands over the sides of her thighs. He leaned down and found it was easy enough to nuzzle his face between her legs.

She cried out in surprise, but he gave her no moment of respite. He used his lips and his tongue to overwhelm her. He could tell that she was trying to buck her hips, but he used his hands to hold her in place, digging his fingers in a bit harder than he normally would. He prayed that he was giving her everything she craved.

Belle’s climax came quickly with this change of pace. Adam sat up and ran his hands up and down her body to bring her down from her high.

After several minutes, he leisurely inserted one finger into his wife and caressed her gently, knowing she would still be sensitive.

He took this time to enjoy the sight of his lovely wife. Adam shifted so that he could see Belle’s face. He observed that her eyes were closed and her breathing had slowed. She looked pleasantly wrecked. If it weren’t for her quiet mewls of approval, he would be wondering whether she had drifted into sleep. 

He added a second finger and eventually a third, giving himself a chance to cool down as he readied her. He knew he wouldn’t last long inside of her after everything that had already transpired.

When she began to respond again, bucking against the pillows and then backwards against his movements, Adam removed his fingers and lined himself up against her entrance.

“Belle?”

 _“Yes,”_ she commanded, leaving no doubt that she had understood his meaning.

He slid into her slowly. This position had proven to be a tight fit the other times they had tried it, but now she was slick and relaxed. With all of her weight resting on the pillows, her body was limp.

When he began to move, Belle cried out, and the sound made him shudder. Adam found that he could relax, too, as he didn’t have to worry about putting any strain on her body. He increased the amount of force behind his thrusts in increments. He hadn’t anticipated the freedom that this set-up would allow, and he experimented with angle and speed, quickly becoming lost in the sensations. He made sure to stay mentally present enough to detect any sign of distress from his beloved, but he received no complaints. Belle was in such a state of bliss and comfort that he could take her as hard as he dared. It proved to be too intense for him to remain upright. His whole body was trembling, and he fell forward, his hands landing on either side of Belle’s head.

Adam’s body completely covered hers now. He made languid strokes into her and laid his face against her back, trying to process everything. His only regret about this idea was that it would be difficult to kiss his wife properly, but it still felt as intimate as any other position.

There was a giggle from beneath him, and he chuckled breathlessly as he realized she was probably feeling just as powerful as he was in that moment, seeing as how he had practically collapsed on top of her.

Adam had just enough energy to tip the balance of power once more. He slid one of his hands in-between her body and the pillows and pressed it against her.

 _“So much...”_ She sounded absolutely broken. He paused.

“Too much?”

“Y _-yes,_ but don’t stop!”

That didn’t make much sense to him, but he wasn’t about to question it.

His lips trailed up her shoulder blade and along to her neck. He pressed his teeth there and dragged them up to her ear, where he nipped lightly.

Adam had spent the first several weeks after the curse mentally rolling his eyes at his own overly-sentimental thoughts and the romantic words that slipped from his lips, but he had since become more comfortable with expressing the depth of his affection for Belle.

“You are everything,” he whispered simply.

At his words, Belle’s body tightened around him and throbbed against his fingers. Her simultaneous cry drove him over the edge, and he whimpered against her skin as he finished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title means "Nights Under the Moon" to complement the song Days in the Sun.
> 
> I chose the amount of time that they’ve been married purely for the sake of leaving room for a honeymoon chapter later on (carriage travel takes forever). 
> 
> I've never written a full adult scene before, so I hope it was enjoyable!


	2. The Library

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It had only taken a couple days of having human hands and a human mouth for Adam to realize that he and Belle were flirting with disaster in the library.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one takes place before they’re married and is rated Mature. No lemon in this one (do people still say lemon?).

Belle scurried up the front steps of the castle. She’d been showing her father around the now-unfrozen gardens when Lumière had appeared to inform her that the Prince was done with meetings for the day. Her father had chuckled and dismissed her before she could get a word out.

It had been another hot July day, but the sun had since disappeared over the horizon, and the summer nights were chilly. Belle had dressed in light apparel in anticipation of a sunny day exploring the grounds, and while she was grateful for the movement that her simple skirt and bloomers allowed her, she shivered as she pushed the main door shut behind her and climbed the drafty stairs of the castle’s interior.

When she entered the library, she paused for a moment to appreciate the view she had of Adam crouching by the fireplace. He had removed his jacket and thrown it on the table. She was surprised at how comfortable she was with his human form. She had never experienced any level of romantic intimacy before, but there was nothing intimidating about what was developing between her and her prince.

Once he had the fire burning steadily, Adam stood up and turned to face the room. His face broke into a wide smile when he saw her, and she was surprised at the saccharine thoughts that flitted through her mind in response to such a simple action. Something about his smile being brighter than the fire, and his hair looking like a glowing halo. She shook her head lightly. What was he doing to her?

He held out his arm, beckoning to her, and she was across the room before she had made a conscious decision to move. She clasped his hand, and he gently pulled her close enough to give her a kiss.

The fire was warm, but Adam’s touch somehow surpassed it, and she suddenly felt drowsy in a way that had nothing to do with sleep. Her hands wandered up his chest as they had during their first kiss.

It had been two weeks since the end of the curse, and Belle had privately decided to memorize one new thing about his body each day. She was learning the way his nose crinkled when he was teasing her, his scars from his rambunctious childhood, the sharp angles of his new and _very_ human silhouette...

“Would you like the chair...?” Adam had pulled back from her and was gesturing awkwardly towards the armchair, which was seated near the fire. No matter how much she insisted that she was perfectly comfortable around him, he remained cautious. Belle wasn’t worried, though. She was confident that he would relax eventually, with some persistence on her part. But she still frowned at his current suggestion. The sofa that was arranged next to the chair was plenty big enough for the both of them. He had shared that seat with her without hesitation in the final days of the curse.

Belle ran her eyes over Adam’s face, trying to evaluate how much he would panic if she pushed their unspoken boundaries tonight. He didn’t look as tired or overwhelmed as he often did after meetings and his other godforsaken princely duties, so she made her decision.

She took several steps back and lay down along the length of the couch.

“Are you tired, my love?” Adam’s brow furrowed in genuine confusion, probably wondering why she had come to the library if she just wanted to rest. She bit her lip to stop herself from giggling in sheer delight, remembering the times that her antics had earned that same adorable expression from him when he was a foot taller and had fur. He was just as endlessly endearing in his human form.

“Mmm, no. Just a bit...cold,” she said, hoping he would catch on. Sadly, he stayed rooted to the spot a few feet away.

Belle sighed and stretched, trying to be seductive. _And probably failing,_ she thought to herself.

“You should join me.”

He looked at her, and then at the door. She wondered if he perhaps was going to flee.

Desperate times.

Feeling a bit daring, Belle pulled the ribbon from her hair. She shook her head and let her tresses fall over the pillow as she reclined. She was pleased to see him gulp and shift his feet.

Before she’d met Adam, Belle had never flirted with anyone, or even imagined that she would want to. Now she was unable to resist teasing and charming him. It was thrilling.

“One moment.” He made a beeline for the main door of the library, and she pouted.

She sat up and peered over the back of the sofa, wondering what he would do. Rather than leaving, Adam closed the main doors and secured the lock.

“I just want to make sure we’re not interrupted” he called from across the room.

Ah.

But a problem occurred to her.

“There’s still the far door, dear. It doesn’t have a lock.”

He paused, and she hoped he was trying to think of another venue for their activities.

“I had one installed last week.” He cast a sheepish side-glance at her and then turned away to head to the door in question.

It had only taken a couple days of having human hands and a human mouth for Adam to realize that he and Belle were flirting with disaster in the library, and so he had asked Cogsworth to send for a locksmith. He hadn’t been able to look Cogsworth in the eye when he had specified which door was in need of a lock, but that was a small price to pay for a lifetime of privacy in their favorite room.

“Well, then I guess you’ve run out of excuses to come over here,” she called to him as he began to make his way back.

As he came around the sofa, she tugged on his arm, begging him with her eyes to let himself give in. Adam hesitated, but then he leaned over and carefully placed himself over her. He rested his hands and knees on either side of her, with no part of their bodies touching. 

Adam had admitted to her that he experienced mixed feelings during private moments when he was the one to initiate them. He associated his human form with hedonism and selfishness, and he was terrified of falling back into his old mindset and behavior. When he looked down at his hands, he remembered them passing over naked bodies with no thought for anyone’s pleasure but his own. A particularly heated moment between him and Belle on the very same sofa the week before had abruptly ended with Adam suddenly withdrawing, so frantically that he nearly fell onto the floor.

Belle looked up at Adam now, hoping to see pure warmth and love in his eyes, but it was mixed with the same fear as that other day. She sighed, but she had expected nothing less. She reached her hand to the nape of his neck to free his hair, and it fell over his shoulders. He was so close that it blocked her view on either side. He was all she could see and feel.

While it saddened Belle that Adam was struggling, the control it gave her secretly excited her. He had no trouble when she initiated their moments, and she had found that he was more than willing to follow her lead. Devilishly, she now bent her leg that was closer to the edge of the couch and allowed her knee to brush his groin. It was the first time she had come into contact with that particular part of his anatomy. He gasped but made no movement as she scooted up so that she could swing her leg around to the outside of his. Their legs were now alternated, with one of his between hers as he knelt on all fours above her.

Her maneuver had caused her skirt to ride up, and as Belle pulled him down closer, his leg was suddenly pressing directly against her bloomers. He rested some of his body weight on her and oh, _oh._ Belle threw her head back and whimpered. She snaked an arm around Adam’s waist to keep him from shifting away. Her hips bucked of their own accord, seeking more pressure.

After a few seconds of the unexpected sensations, Belle managed to focus. She had already opened her mouth to reassure Adam when she saw that most of the apprehension was gone from his eyes.

But nor was there the innocent warmth and love that she had hoped to see earlier. No, this was something else entirely, and she felt the meaning of his gaze shoot straight to the part of her where his leg was pressing.

Adam shook his head as if to clear it, and he pulled his leg back, breaking the moment. He looked down at her, brow furrowed again, and she reached a finger up automatically to smooth the crease between his eyes.

“Was that alright?” he asked in that small, self-conscious voice that always made her want to bring his father back from the dead just so she could push him off the tower.

 _“Yes,”_ she breathed, trying to infuse patience and understanding into her speech even though she felt more like pleading. 

He lowered his leg slowly, and the anticipation made her gasp before their bodies even made contact. He chuckled this time as her head fell back.

“Belle?”

“Yes?”

He laid his head next to hers on the pillow and pressed kisses to her neck before speaking.

“Have you...” He paused, searching for words that would make his meaning clear without dishonoring her. “Have you made yourself feel this way?”

She was silent for a few moments, and he kept his face buried in her neck, hoping he hadn’t offended her.

“Yes,” she whispered, so quietly that he almost didn’t hear.

Belle felt only a bit of hesitation over answering his question. Mostly, she was surprised that he needed to ask. Did he really imagine that she never thought about their kisses and his tentative, wandering hands after they said goodnight? The suggestion that he had no such effect on her was laughable.  

Adam had to close his eyes and focus his thoughts as his mind was flooded with images of Belle finding her pleasure all alone in her suite in the East Wing, learning the secrets of her body that he hoped to study for the rest of his life.

That line of thought was enough to break through his reservations. Belle wanted more, and he wanted more. Why had he even bothered to try to limit them to kisses?

Adam lifted himself up on his elbows and gazed down at her. She looked completely at ease, and he felt a sense of calm come over him. He tilted his head and initiated a deep kiss. When their lips met, he surprised her by increasing the pressure of his leg against her. The kiss became sloppy as she whimpered into his mouth, and he felt himself grow hard. Her arms wrapped around his middle and stroked up and down his back, clutching at his shirt as his leg found a rhythm.

After several blissful minutes of this, he pulled back from the kiss and lay down next to her. Belle was panting, and he propped himself up on his elbow to watch her. He thanked the heavens that the library had a comfortable sofa with plenty of seating room. This would never have worked on a prim and proper parlor sofa.

When her breathing evened out and she opened her eyes, he placed his hand on her cheek and lightly turned her head towards him for another kiss.

This one started softer and slower, but it was just as enjoyable. Belle apparently had some other ideas, though. She grabbed Adam’s wrist and moved his hand down to her chest, hoping that he would be distracted enough to go along with it. She was surprised to discover that he didn’t need to be persuaded. He began to touch her of his own accord.

Adam was entranced by the feel of Belle’s body through her light summer clothing. He still couldn’t believe that she wanted him in any way, much less this way.

Emboldened by the way that Belle eagerly leaned into his touch, Adam let his hand drift further down, over her stomach and onward to her hips, where her skirt was bunched up.

He broke away from their kiss and pressed his forehead to hers.

“Is this still alright?” His hand slowly moved further south to where his leg had landed earlier.

Belle nodded and spread her legs as far as she could without pushing him off of the sofa. He tried to mimic what his leg had done earlier. He felt triumphant when he found the right rhythm and she began to tremble.

“Adam, _please...”_

“Please what, my darling?”

“Please touch me," she said simply. 

He was stunned. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting when he had decided to lock the doors, but he hadn’t allowed himself to imagine _this._

“I...could you be more specific?” He sounded ridiculous even to his own ears, but he didn’t want to assume anything with her. He couldn’t mess this up.

She bunched up her skirt the rest of the way, lifted the waistband of her bloomers, and tucked his hand about an inch underneath.

Oh. Well. That was straightforward enough.

He slid his hand further out of sight and groaned against her neck when he encountered her coarse hair. He made contact with her most sensitive spot sooner than he was expecting, evidenced by her soft cry. Her shoulder banged against his chin as she arched her back, and he chuckled. He focused on that spot for a short while, carefully working Belle into a frenzy.

With his hand down her clothing, he felt like an adolescent again. Yet, in another way, he didn’t quite feel as if he had done this before. With regret, his mind recalled past encounters with faces and bodies he could hardly remember. In those cases, he had been seeking a meaningless distraction. The exchanges of physical pleasure had not been accompanied by any feelings of companionship or satisfaction. This was a wholly different act.

Adam was amazed at the effect that his simple touches were having on his beloved. He didn’t think anyone had ever reacted quite so enthusiastically or genuinely to his actions.

His fingers roamed further, gently parting her and touching every bit of flesh. Belle’s eyes were shut, and she was putting great effort into controlling her breathing.

“How...” she moaned.

“I thought you said you had done this before?”

“I have, but it didn’t feel like _this!”_ She sounded almost frustrated, as if the world had been keeping a secret from her. He grinned, pleased with himself.

When he reached her entrance, Belle opened her eyes and gazed at him, saying nothing. He could see that she was fine with whatever he might choose to do. He moved his fingers back and forth over the opening, never quite entering her. No, he would save that for another night. He wanted to savor this. He could tell she was already close, and there was no need to risk stressing her by going further.  

He moved his fingers in a flurry, focusing on the couple of particularly sensitive spots that he had found, and he watched as her body tensed.

He leaned in and sucked on her neck, and that was all it took. Belle shouted his name. He whispered wonderful things in her ear about how beautiful she looked and how he hoped to give her this pleasure every night. She shuddered against his body and curled up in his arms.

Adam was amused when Belle quickly drifted off to sleep, but he cherished the opportunity to hold her close as he carried her to bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I definitely think that Belle would be involved in meetings and other duties in the long run, but this is so soon after the curse that I figure she wouldn’t really have an official or well-defined role. 
> 
> P.S. In this timeline that I’m constructing, they most likely wait until their wedding night, solely because of pregnancy. I think Belle has had enough experience with being an outcast that she wouldn’t want to carry a prince’s illegitimate child in an 18th century rural province. That would suck.


	3. The Closet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Adam is jealous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is rated Mature and actually has a bit of plot, if you squint. Also angst.

The castle had been a revolving door of regional diplomats, businessmen, and nobles for most of the two months since the breaking of the curse.

Adam had been doing his best to space out the visits for everyone’s sake. The household staff was years out of practice in accommodating official guests, after all. Not everyone was as easy to live with as Belle, especially when it came to the sort of acquaintances that he had acquired prior to the curse.

However, a week earlier, they had been sharing dinner with yet another shallow aristocrat from Adam’s past when he had looked over at Belle and realized she looked almost as stressed as she had when she said goodbye to her father. That shocked him into action. The aristocrat and his attendants had been ushered out of the castle first thing the next morning on Adam’s orders, and the Prince had put a temporary stay on inviting anyone to the castle who wasn’t from Villeneuve.

In the week since, the letters had been piling up, and Belle had made somewhat of a game out of sorting them.

Tonight, she was sprawled on the floor by the fire in the library. Adam sat near her, watching in amusement and explaining who each person was. A handful of haphazard piles lay in front of the couple, as they had found that there were several distinct categories of correspondence.

“Angry,” she said suddenly, frowning adorably before tossing a letter into a pile to their right. Adam chuckled at the size of that particular stack. He couldn’t blame them. The aftermath of the curse had been confusing enough for the people of Villeneuve, and _they_ were privy to the truth of what had happened. Anyone outside the village who had once known him, or even known _of_ him, had no such explanation for his absence in several years of trade, diplomacy, weddings, and other affairs.

Belle cracked open the seal of the next letter and began to read it.

It usually took only a few lines for her to choose a pile, but she seemed to be reading this letter in full, and with interest.

“Who is that from?”

“Gabriel-François Antoine, Marquis de...Mirambeau.”

“Ah.” Mirambeau was a relatively small, misshapen plot that was mostly inconsequential in regional affairs. Due to the proximity of their lands, Adam remembered the young man well enough, but only from official events. The Marquis was a good decade younger than Adam, at least. By the time of the curse, he had been just barely old enough for his presence to be accepted at more debauched gatherings like the parties that Adam had thrown, but he had never attended. He had been a much better man that Adam even at that age, and they’d had little in common. Adam mused that he would undoubtedly get along with him quite well now.

“That’s just southeast of here, isn’t it?”

“Yes. His territory shares a bit of border with our farmland in that direction.”

Belle whipped her head around to look at him.

_“Our?”_

It took Adam a moment to realize what he had said, and then he felt himself blush.

“Well, I just meant, you’re _from_ Villeneuve, so it’s my land in one way, but in another way it’s...”

She giggled, and he gave up. There were much worse things he could accidentally say.

“He goes by Gabe, or at least he did as a child. His father was Marquis before him and died when he was a boy. The last I know, his mother was still acting as a regent of sorts, along with her brother, who had been given a place in the household. Their father, Gabe’s grandfather, began as an apprentice artisan and rose to become a well-respected businessman. He passed shortly before the curse began. I think you would have liked him.”

Adam paused. He recalled feeling uncomfortable around the happy family. He now recognized it as jealousy. Grandfather, mother, son, and uncle, all joking, teasing, and scheming. Cheerfully reminiscing about Gabe’s late father, when Adam could barely stand to think about his late mother.

“It was altogether a much better upbringing than mine.”

Belle reached for his hand and squeezed it. He smiled to reassure her that he was alright, and she glanced back at the letter.

“I think we need a new pile.”

“Is that so?”

“An ‘apologetic’ pile.”

“Really?” This surprised him. Surely even Gabe couldn’t be so forgiving.

She handed the letter to him, and he skimmed it. The Marquis was indeed apologetic, and it was the only genuine-sounding message of that sort that they had received. Like everyone else, the Marquis had just remembered that Adam existed, and he was taking all the blame upon himself for the lack of communication. In the letter, he explained that he had recently ended the regency and had taken on all official responsibilities, and he would be honored to see Adam again to discuss the future of their territories.

Adam handed the letter back to Belle, and she continued reading. By the end, she was smiling, and he felt a strange twisting feeling in his stomach.

Belle tossed the letter onto an empty patch of the rug and grinned. Thus, Gabe became the only member of the "apologetic" pile as well as the sole exception to the strict “No official visitors” policy.

Adam penned a letter inviting the Marquis to visit at his leisure, and a rider took it the next morning.

They received a response just two days later. This second letter was every bit as pleasant as the first. In it, the Marquis gracefully accepted the invitation and stated that he would be there as soon as possible. Belle read over the letter with what could only be described as glee, and Adam’s stomach twisted again. He wondered whether he had eaten something foul.

The Marquis de Mirambeau arrived another couple of days later. Adam and Belle met him on the front drive and spent the majority of the day showing him around the grounds and the castle. It quickly became apparent to Adam that the Marquis and Belle had much in common, both in terms of their interests and in their demeanor.

By the time dinner was announced, one would have thought that Belle and the Marquis had known each other for years. They certainly made an effort to include Adam in their conversations, but he found himself sitting in silence.

“Adam, are you quite well?”

For the first time since the end of the curse, Adam was regretting telling someone to call him by his informal name. He could feel his old habits rising in his chest. He had an urge to assert his status and establish himself as a more worthy suitor than the Marquis. He just barely managed to give a polite answer.

“Yes, just a headache.”

After dessert, which had been dramatically presented by Lumière, the trio retired to the library. The Marquis immediately spotted Belle’s work station, and his face lit up. As Belle showed him what she was working on, he chatted happily to her about the projects that he had worked on with his late grandfather.

Watching them, Adam wondered not for the first time where Belle’s life would have taken her had the curse never occurred, or if the Enchantress hadn’t led Maurice to the castle. In the former scenario, he knew that he never would have paid any mind to Belle or her talents. He hadn’t visited Villeneuve a single time between his mother’s death and the beginning of the curse. And even if Belle had become more widely known for her inventions or other accomplishments, his interests had been too shallow for him to have cared. He might have noted her beauty, had their paths crossed. No one was able to deny that part of her. But he was sure he would have immediately written her off due to her status. Unlike Gabe’s father, Adam hadn’t shared his company with daughters of artists, much less deigned to share his bed with them. And there was no excuse for his arrogance. Adam had no official obstacles to marrying someone of Belle’s class. His principality was self-governing, and his father was dead. There would have been nothing and no one to stop him, but there was no chance he would have given a _peasant_ the time of day.

The way Belle told it, she would have remained unmarried, at least for a good while. Villeneuve was small enough that she had met every available man of a suitable age, she claimed, and she had no viable way of moving elsewhere.

Adam wasn’t so sure about her theory. The world was changing. Men would come and go, just as Belle’s father had relocated to the village with her years ago. Surely someone besides a priest would have appreciated her eventually. There had to be an eligible bachelor without claws who would have viewed her intelligence and her spirit as blessings rather than a hindrance. Someone would have shown her kindness, listened to her thoughts, challenged her mind...

And that someone could very well have been the Marquis de Mirambeau. In the latter scenario, had the curse expired and become permanent, Adam supposed that his principality would have been claimed by other landowners. Villeneuve may very well have been absorbed into Gabe’s marquisate without anyone remembering that it had ever been otherwise. Gabe would have made sure that Villeneuve’s girls were allowed an education, just as Adam knew Mirambeau’s girls were, thanks in part to Gabe’s mother. Perhaps Belle would have jumped at the chance to teach them, which would have brought her into Gabe’s circle, and that would be that.

On top of all this, the Marquis was also closer to Belle in age. Only a handful of years older, by his count, whereas Adam was nearly twice her age. Age wasn’t the most important factor, Adam knew, but he sometimes felt dirty when he thought about his past and remembered that Belle was only eighteen years old. He held no antiquated views about virtue, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that a man like him had no right to be the first kiss, first love, first _everything_ of such a lovely young woman. Gabe would have been a much more suitable and worthy match in every conceivable way.

Adam slipped out of the library. He doubted his presence would be missed, or even noticed, and he was beginning to feel as if he might lose his dinner.

As he stomped down the hall towards a less-traveled part of the castle, his thoughts became bitter, and he chided himself. Belle had made a new friend. That was all. It was such a simple and innocent thing, something she deserved and had missed out on for years, and here he was, making it all about him and corrupting it. He knew he had nothing to worry about.

But then he remembered: they were not yet engaged. If Belle had been willing, Adam would have married her immediately and without hesitation. He could have summoned the village priest of whom Belle spoke so fondly, and of course Belle’s father as well, and they would have been married within a day of the curse breaking. But Belle, who had been feeling overwhelmed and who was always the more rational of the pair, had balked at the idea of a whirlwind engagement after everything that had happened. She had suggested a normal courtship that would provide her with time to think about everything. So here they were two months later, with no formal recognition of their relationship other than her residence in the castle.

He was being stupid, he knew. The Marquis would not proposition Belle. If that were a possibility, Adam never would have left her alone with him. If he were that sort of man, Belle would not have taken a liking to him, and Adam would not be stewing in a dark hallway. Besides, Belle loved _him._ The fact that his feet could fit in his boots was proof of that.

He sat down on the nearest staircase and slumped against the railing.

And that was where Belle found him half an hour later.

“There you are!” She sounded thrilled just to see him, as always, and Adam knew she would be his lifeline out of his shameful spiral of self-pity.

“Gabe went to bed. He was tired from the journey.”

He tried to shield his face as she drew closer, but Belle plopped down on the carpet in front of him. She must have seen something in his eyes that betrayed his torment, because her face immediately fell. It was the look she had given him the first time he had a nightmare after the curse and showed up at her bedroom door in the middle of the night. He must have looked much the same as he did now.

Adam was both hopeful and terrified that she would understand what he was feeling without him having to explain.

“Gabe’s town has a school for girls.” He wasn’t sure why that was the first thing to come out of his mouth.

Belle smiled.

“I know. He told me just after you left. I was showing him the library’s collections, and he saw the pile of children’s books sitting out.”

“Oh.”

Her face changed again so that it was unreadable, and then she stood abruptly.

“Let’s go for a walk.”

Adam shakily stood and allowed her to lead him along the darkened hallways.

He wasn’t looking where they were going, but when they turned a third corner, Belle stopped suddenly and fixed him with an intense look. She seemed to be deciding what to do with him. He expected a kiss, or maybe for her to demand that he explain what was wrong, but she grabbed his hand again and pulled him to the end of the corridor.

Adam figured out where they were and was confused. There was nothing in that direction but storage.

Oh.

When they reached the end of the hallway, Belle whipped open the door to the closet, which turned out to be empty. She spun around and pulled Adam inside after her. She shut the door behind him, and once his eyes adjusted, he could just barely make out her expression.

She whispered his name, then, sounding utterly sinful, and he moaned.  

There was a rational part of him that was telling him to get a hold of himself, but that part of his mind was drowning even though she had barely touched him.

Belle pulled him towards her, and he leaned in for a kiss. She giggled, ducking out of the way and walking around him. He tried to turn to face her again, but she stopped him. She wrapped her arms around him from behind, leading him back a bit until she was against the wall.

He tried not to rest too much of his weight on her, but she seemed to want that as she pulled him tight against her.

Her hands moved to wander across his stomach and hips, and he groaned as their range became more daring.

This was all new. She had pressed against him with her leg or her body on other occasions, and he knew that it was something she did on purpose, but her hands had never drifted that far.

“Belle, wait.”

She paused her movements.

“If you do...that...this will get very messy very quickly. We wouldn’t want to leave, erm... _evidence.”_ He refused to finish in his trousers like an adolescent, but nor did he want one of the maids to come across a sullied closet. 

“Oh.” She sounded confused, and though he was facing away from her, he could imagine the expression on her face. Then she seemed to figure it out. “Oh! Of course. The...yes.”

He tried to free himself from her arms so that he could turn around, thinking that their little rendezvous was over. But she held him more tightly to keep him in place.

“What would we need in order to take care of that?”

He paused, wondering if he should answer, but he couldn’t help himself.

“Something that can be washed. Bed sheets, or a piece of cloth.”

Her hands were back on his hips, suddenly, and he stood stock-still.

Adam felt her hand reach deep into one of the front pockets of his trousers, and he bit back a groan.

“Aha!”

She waved her hand in front of him, brandishing a white, fluttering shape. His handkerchief.

Oh, hell.

He looked down to see that her other hand was on the move. It provided just enough warning for him to throw his arm out and brace himself against the back wall of the closet. A split second later, her hand came into contact with his arousal. Adam shuddered, and he worried for a moment that he would finish just from that.

Belle worked over him for several minutes, moving slowly and gently. Neither of them said a word. At some point, she pulled his length out of his drawers and began to stroke him firmly. Adam cried out helplessly and clenched his fists.

Her other hand found its way into his drawers. He realized where she was headed, and his eyes rolled back into his head as her fingers brushed his sac. Adam felt as if he were floating as both of Belle’s hands worked him.

He was surprised that he was capable of any sort of thought, but he vaguely realized that Belle had a bit too much technique for someone who knew nothing of this. He had already learned not to underestimate her cleverness, but there didn’t seem to be any learning curve in her movements. They had discussed certain things, and he had answered her questions, but not about this. Not about how to touch a man. She had been planning this attack, then, or at least preparing in general. Maybe by reading one of the more explicit books that he knew were among the library’s collections, or perhaps by talking to Plumette.

The realization that she cared so much about his pleasure added a new level of emotion to the experience. As wonderful as their current arrangement was, he wanted to face her. He doubted that he would really be able to see her eyes in the darkness, but he would feel closer to her. He also had to admit that he was concerned about unwittingly crushing her against the wall when he reached his climax.

Belle must have sensed his need for a change in position, because she slipped out from behind him, pushed him back against the wall with enough enthusiasm to earn a strangled moan from him, and immediately resumed touching him.

“Hands behind your back.”

“What?” He suddenly found himself capable of words again.

 _Good God,_ he thought. _What has the woman been reading?_

“I don’t want you distracting me.”

“But Belle...”

“Do as I say.”

_Fuck._

She had never used that tone before in their physical encounters, but he hoped it would become a regular occurrence. He obediently folded his arms behind his back and pressed his hands against the wall. She smirked at her victory and worked him harder.

“Minx.” The word was barely comprehensible as he gasped.

She _laughed,_ then, and he knew he was in trouble.

Belle gripped his length by the head and lifted. With the heel of her other palm, she rubbed quick, small circles against the underside of his shaft.

_“Merde!”_

The proximity of her body was the only thing keeping him from sliding down the wall. He moved his hands out to his sides to hold himself steady, but he still sunk a few inches. Belle hummed in thought and pressed her body against his, moving slightly off-center so that her hands had room to continue their assault. She nuzzled against his neck, and he threw his head back and whimpered.

“B-belle, the handkerchief...”

One of her hands left him and was quickly replaced by the cloth.

“I chose you,” she whispered simply. She tilted her head to suck on his neck, then, and he was lost.

She continued to softly stroke his length until he whined, and then she tenderly wiped him off and tucked him back into his drawers.

When she had finished, Adam clutched at her arm in the darkness and drew her to him. He held her against him until his breathing slowed. Belle pulled back and started to open the closet door, but he reached out to stop her.

“Wait, we can’t leave yet.”

“Why? Do you hear someone?”

“No. It’s just that I haven’t returned the favor.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the original story by Madame de Villeneuve, Belle is said to be 16 years old. Disney's films don’t give an age, but an alternate beginning from early in the production of the 1991 film says she is 17. I’m saying she’s 18 to avoid her being underage for the purposes of posting the story.
> 
> Madame de Villeneuve lived in Paris her whole life, but she was from an old family of La Rochelle, so I’m sticking Adam’s principality in that part of France. Mirambeau is a very old commune that is currently within the borders of the Charente-Maritime department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It was once a marquisate.
> 
> A Marquis is one level below a Prince in the system of French nobility.


	4. The Tower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six months after their marriage, Adam fulfills one of Belle's fantasies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you liked Chapter 1: The West Wing, you’re probably going to love this one. Buckle up.

The second the carriage came to a halt in front of the castle, Adam hopped out and stomped through the snow to the other side. Belle usually stepped down from the carriage on her own before he could make it around, but with the inclement weather, he hoped that she would wait.

The coachman didn’t even make a move to come down and attend to the Princess, well aware by now that both she and the Prince would be trying to take care of that themselves. Instead, he waited patiently in his seat to drive the carriage around to the stables. The coachman’s decision was a wise one, Adam thought, as Belle pushed open the door and narrowly missed his face.

He nearly slipped as he ducked out of the way. Regaining himself, he looked up at his wife.

“The ground is quite slippery, my dear.” He deepened his voice and put on the airs of a gentleman, hoping she would allow him this ritual if he made her laugh.

Belle raised an eyebrow at him, and she couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her. But then her face straightened, and she didn’t move to get out of the carriage.

“Is that the _only_ reason why you’re helping me?”

“Well, I was also hoping to walk inside arm-in-arm with my wife and whisk her away to somewhere warmer and more enjoyable than the front drive.”

She narrowed her eyes skeptically. “Did you talk to Mrs. Potts before we left?”

“No more than usual. About something in particular?” He was genuinely puzzled, and he wondered what thoughts were running through her brilliant mind.

Belle looked for a moment as if she might answer, but then she shook her head and allowed him to help her out of the carriage. He smiled and pressed a kiss to her cheek once she was safely on her feet.

Adam noted with a frown that Belle was being much more cautious in the snow than she had ever been before. He worried that she was sore from their journey, though they had only come from Villeneuve. However, his mind was quickly overcome with more pleasant thoughts as he studied Belle’s face. The snowstorm had passed, and the sun shone brightly on his wife as they slowly made their way up the drive. He gazed at her in awe. Her eyes sparkled with a subtle dusting of the shimmery silver make-up that she sometimes experimented with. Her face was pale, except for her cheeks, which were flaming red from the cold. He mused that she looked more similar to the ladies who used to grace his court than she ever had, though he smartly chose not to say so out loud. She was far more beautiful than them, anyway. Adam’s eyes ran over her body, which was concealed by a deep blue gown and an elegant, silvery cloak that completed her look. She looked like a whimsical part of the winter landscape.

As they entered the castle through the main doors, he caught her looking almost wistfully ahead and to their left. That was the third time he had caught her eyes inexplicably focusing on that part of the foyer since he had returned from La Rochelle the week before. She hadn’t felt well enough to accompany him on that trip, but now he wondered if something else was going on.

He took a moment to think more carefully about the direction of her gaze, and then his stomach dropped. She was looking towards the entrance to the tower. The tower where he had imprisoned her at a time when the weather at the castle was much like this. But surely that wasn’t the source of the problem, nearly a year and a half later? They had talked through it, and this was her second winter here since the end of the perpetual freeze.

Fortunately, they were alone in the foyer, as no one had known exactly when to expect them back in this weather. Adam stopped and moved to stand in front of Belle. Her face was unreadable, but he could practically hear her mind racing.

He tucked his hand under her chin and gently raised her head. He leaned his face down to meet hers and touched their foreheads together.

“What’s troubling you, my love?”

Her shoulders slumped, and he caught her eyes darting over his right shoulder.

“I wouldn’t say anything is _troubling_ me...”

What pleasant thoughts could be stressing her so? He bumped their noses together playfully, and it had the desired effect. She seemed to relax.

“Two things, actually. The second can wait, but I’ll tell you the first if you promise not to fall into a pit of self-loathing.”

This startled him, but he didn’t want her to close up again, so he tried to keep their conversation light.

“I promise to _conceal_ my self-loathing,” he said teasingly.

She rolled her eyes at him, and then her gaze drifted over his shoulder yet again.

“There’s something that I want.”

She looked off to the side with a shameful look that had become less and less frequent over the months of their marriage and their exploration of intimacy. Adam furrowed his brow.

“We’ve, erm...’christened’ several rooms of the castle” was the only clue she offered.

He grinned slyly. “More than several, I would say.” Adam thought back to their midnight snack adventure several weeks prior that had resulted in a much longer visit to the kitchen than was necessary to acquire food, and the second round of lovemaking that had occurred in a spare bedroom on their way back to the West Wing.

“While you were in La Rochelle, I grew bored and wound up exploring the tower.”

“Why?!” He couldn’t help his surprise. When the curse had lifted, the castle had been fully restored so that the design wasn’t as insanely hazardous as when Belle first set foot in the tower, so it wasn’t that he was worried about her safety. In fact, only two cells remained, and the rest seemed to have been transformed into standard rooms and closets. But he couldn’t think why Belle would _want_ to go up there, of all places.

“I told myself I just wanted to look around and see how we could use the space.”

“But...” he prompted.

“But that wasn’t why.” Belle lowered her head and shuffled her feet. “I want you to _take_ me.”

“In the tower? I know we don’t always choose the most comfortable locations, but a dirty stone tower in winter?”

“When I say ‘take,’ I’m not just referring to _that._ It’s more than that.”

Adam’s thoughts were torn between caution and arousal. He thought he understood where she was going with this, but he wasn’t sure what to say, so he waited for her to continue.

 _“Take._ In the literal sense. The way you first did. It has to be in the tower.”

He swallowed.

“You mean you want me to...imprison you. _Possess_ you. Again.” He tried desperately to conceal the fact that the idea was already growing on him.

_Bless my wife and her boundless imagination._

“Yes.” Her answer was more of a moan than a spoken word.

He suddenly felt frozen, but then she gave a slight nod. For some reason, that made up his mind. He and Belle had been married the previous April. Now, they had been husband and wife for half a year, but they hadn’t run out of things to learn about one another. Especially in the marital bed. A few months ago, he probably would have felt guilty for even entertaining her request. But they had come a long way, both emotionally and physically. It wouldn’t be so different than the ways in which they had pushed limits before. It wasn’t anything they couldn’t handle.

Adam grabbed Belle’s wrist firmly and led her up the tower stairs. He racked his memory and managed to find the cell where he had imprisoned the man who was now his father-in-law, and then Belle herself. They found that the cell was still intact.

He pulled the lever to open the cell, and he lightly pushed her inside. Adam made sure that the old grate door was secure and would not fall and entrap them. Then he followed his prisoner inside.

“Stand against the wall.”

Belle obeyed, and he watched her hungrily, formulating a plan in his head. Though the cell had a back wall now, it still had a large open window. The room was as freezing as the outdoors. He couldn’t undress Belle fully, then. He didn’t want her to be cold. Besides, on the off-chance that someone were to investigate their noises, he and Belle would be in full view of the intruder. She wouldn’t have time to cover herself.

“Leave your cloak on. Hood up.” She did as he commanded, and although his requests so far had been simple, her obedience was pushing him into the role that she clearly wanted: a seductive mockery of his old self.

“Lift the front of your skirt.” She bent over again and pulled up her skirt until she was gripping her hemline at her waist.

“Are you currently able to breathe through your nose?” He recalled her illness the week before.  

“Yes,” Belle answered quickly. She hoped that she would get to take him in her mouth, but he said something very different.

“Hold your skirt up using your mouth.”

Her jaw dropped.

He stood still as he waited to see what she would do. She could refuse at any time, of course. They had selected a code word as they’d started to experiment. And if she listened to his instruction and was no longer able to speak, Adam would pay close attention to her reactions. However, he silently hoped that she would go along with his plan.

When she didn’t move, he explained part of his reasoning. “It will keep our hands free.”

“I’ll look silly.”

He quirked an eyebrow at her. That sentence didn’t contain their code word. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to do it, then. She just wanted some encouragement. And oh, he could deliver on that.

“Do as I say, peasant.” They had explored control before, and the both of them had uttered that phrase, but never with an epithet such as “peasant.” The setting seemed to call for it, and it fell naturally from his lips. He could tell by her shiver that she liked this small addition to their play, but she still didn’t move to do as he’d said.

“My dear,” he said, changing his tone again but retaining the scheming glint in his eye. “I intend to make you scream, and you wouldn’t want someone to come running to assist you, now would you?” Belle was many things in their marital bed, but he knew she wasn’t an exhibitionist.

Her head fell back against the cell wall, and for a moment he worried that her legs would collapse.

Belle found that she couldn’t and wouldn’t argue with _that_ logic, and she wasn’t particularly interested in stripping down in the freezing cell anyway. She hadn’t thought that far ahead when she had fantasized about this. So, she found a clean portion of her hemline, twisted it until it balled up, and bit down.

Adam felt himself grow hard at the sight, and he had to resist the urge to handle himself. He stepped forward until their bodies were almost pressed together. Blessedly, he saw that she was wearing simple, loose undergarments despite the cold. He briefly wondered at the reason for her choice, but he was distracted from that line of thought by the fact that all he had to do to bare her to him was kneel and tug the thin garments down her legs. He did so, and she lifted each foot in turn so that he could pull the fabric over her boots and off of her.

He placed one of his hands against her calf and trailed it up her leg. When he reached her knee, he replaced his hand with his lips and continued the journey upwards.

As he reached her hip bone, she buried her fingers in his hair. He patted her thigh, not hard enough to qualify as a slap, but she groaned all the same.

“You think you’re worthy to touch a Prince? You are here for your punishment, and my entertainment. Hands at your sides, and spread your legs.”

When she had shifted her stance, he placed his lips against her inner thigh and suckled the delicate skin there. Then, he used two fingers to spread her womanhood and began to torture her with his tongue and his lips. When he hummed against her in contentment, Belle slammed her hands against the rough stone wall to keep her balance, and Adam winced at the sound. That wouldn’t do.

He ceased his actions and rose to his feet. Belle whined at being left wanting, but the only acknowledgement he gave of her condition was a smirk. He took a few steps back to appreciate the view. She let out another muffled moan under his dark gaze, and Adam found that he enjoyed the sound a little too much. He decided to speed things up a bit. He was straining against his trousers, and he scrambled to free himself.

Adam stalked towards his irresistible wife, stroking himself. He pressed her against the wall and bucked roughly against her hip.

“You exist for my pleasure now. Cross your hands above your head.”

She did as he asked straight away this time. He tugged his soft, thick scarf from around his neck and used it to tie her wrists together loosely.

“Nod or shake your head.” With her hands tied, it would be more difficult for her to indicate that he should stop.

She nodded vigorously, and he smiled sweetly at her before falling back into his role.

“Link your arms behind my neck. You may not touch me anywhere else.”

Belle immediately complied, but she also purposefully stepped towards him and rubbed her chest against his front.

“What did I just say?” He pressed her against the wall with one arm. His other hand found one of her nipples and tweaked it roughly, the way he knew she loved. Belle leaned her back against the wall and breathed deeply through her nose.

“Such disrespect for your prince’s orders. It seems we’ll be here a while.”

He couldn’t help but add a whispered “Is this alright?” Belle opened her eyes and looked at him with a dreamy expression. She nodded again, and he let himself relax.

 _“All_ of you belongs to me.”

Then, with a fair bit of awkward maneuvering and muffled giggling, they managed to get Belle’s legs off the ground and wrapped around his waist.

Adam wasn’t confident enough in his ability to keep her secure with one hand, so he quickly came up with another way to stimulate her. He pressed his body as close to hers as he could, which forced her legs wider and spread her for him. Rather than entering her, he lined up his shaft vertically between her folds and started to roll his hips. Each time, the movement brought the head of his length into contact with her most sensitive spot, with most of the weight of his body pressing on her.

As he had promised her, Belle screamed. Thanks to the fabric in her mouth, it wasn’t a piercing sound that would attract attention, but it was unmistakably a scream nonetheless.  

Adam carefully held off his own climax and continued the movement until her body began to tremble.

“Are you close?”

Belle nodded, eyes closed.

Adam grinned, though she couldn’t see it. Belle had fallen for his trap. He wasn’t going to let her come just yet, and now he knew he had to stop.

He leaned back just enough to break the contact, and Belle’s eyes flew open. She tried to buck her hips forward, but he held them tightly against the wall. She struggled, and he felt her fingers bury themselves in the hair at the nape of his neck.

“You are my prisoner, and you are here for _my_ will and my pleasure.”

He lined himself up with her entrance this time. He entered her slowly and carefully, but he quickly discovered that he needn’t have worried. She was more than ready for him.

They had used this position on many occasions, usually against an unfortunate bookshelf in the library. Now he ground his hips against her the way he knew she favored, and he loosened his grip on her hips to allow her to be an active participant in their coupling.

He had planned to go slowly and tease her some more, but that plan was ground to dust as she intentionally clenched her inner muscles around him. It only took a few snaps of his hips for her to find her climax, and his soon followed. The fabric stifled her cries, and he buried his face in her neck to muffle his own sounds.

When he stopped shaking, he helped her lower her legs to the floor. He lifted her linked hands over his head, but he didn’t let go of them. He wasn’t ready to let their charade come to an end.

“I’m not done with you yet.”

Adam thought for a moment and came up with another plan.

He released her hands and shrugged off his thick winter jacket. He backed up until he was pressed against the opposite wall, and then he sat down against it.  

Adam laid down his jacket to the left of his lap, folding the top down to form a makeshift pillow.

“Lie down across my lap, face-up.”

She looked amused, but she didn’t move.

“You can either do as I say right this instant, peasant, or you can lie face _-down_ across my lap instead and see how you like _that_ punishment.”

This time, Belle did collapse. She moaned at his words and clutched the wall for support as best she could as she sank to her knees. Adam automatically lurched forward from his sitting position to help her, but she held out her hands with her palms facing him to indicate that she was alright. He resumed his position against the other wall and thought through her reaction. The act he had suggested was something they had never even discussed before, but it was clear that she had enjoyed the empty threat. He felt himself grow hard again at this realization, and he filed away that information for a later date.

When Belle had collected herself, she crawled towards him, and the sight drew a deep groan from her husband. With her skirt still in her mouth, her knees were bare on the stone floor. Adam winced at the sight, but his wife didn’t seem to care about that. With his assistance, she lay down across his legs face-up and rested her head and back on his jacket. She laid her hands, which were still tied together, on her stomach.  

Adam pulled her right leg closer to his torso and pushed her left leg outwards. With her hemline still balled up in her mouth, and her undergarments lying on the floor across the cell, she was beautifully bared to him from the waist down.

He stroked the inside of her knee with his palm, teasing her again. Then he trailed his fingertips along her thigh and up to her pelvic bone, purposefully avoiding her sex.

When she started to roll her hips upwards, Adam brought the entirety of his hand down between her legs and squeezed. Belle’s body arched.

She cried out repeatedly as he massaged her firmly. She managed to scoot forward a bit and stroke his side idly. Adam grabbed hold of her wrists.

“Still no touching,” he said sternly, shifting her body back into place.

It wasn’t long before she was coming again. Her fists clenched, and she scraped her boots against the floor of the cell.

When her climax had subsided, Belle brought her hands to her mouth and started to remove the hem of her dress.

“Did I say we were finished?”

Belle stared at her husband wide-eyed, probably wondering what else he could possibly have in store for her.

“Lie back down and close your eyes.”

Adam continued to touch her, bringing her to climax again and again. He had learned much about how to please Belle during the long months of their courtship and their half year of unrestrained intimacy, but there was always more to discover, and so he varied his approach. Sometimes he penetrated her, and sometimes he used only friction. Sometimes he touched her softly, letting Belle’s pleasure build so slowly that she spent several long minutes on the brink of orgasm, shrieking around her gag and trembling before her flesh finally pulsated against his fingers. Another time, he stimulated her so frantically that his hand began to ache, and he laughed menacingly as she whimpered. He pinched her, he rubbed her, he rolled her bud between his fingers, he scratched at her inner thighs.

He made sure to stop every few minutes and check that she was alright. Each time, Belle nodded her head enthusiastically, so he continued.

At one point, he used one hand to stroke himself and continued touching her with the other. Belle lifted her bound hands out to him, indicating that she wanted to be freed, and he complied. Once her arms were separated, she propped herself up on her elbows to watch his hands working both of their bodies towards orgasm.

By the time Adam finally decided that they’d had enough, the sun was significantly lower in the sky, and he was starting to shiver due to the fact that his warm outer garments had been put to other uses. His wife’s cheeks were striped with tear streaks, but she had never looked more peaceful. Her eyes were closed, and she was breathing slowly.

Adam redid his trousers. He linked one arm under Belle’s knees and placed the other behind her head. He scooped her up into his lap and gently coaxed her jaw open. When the damp ball of fabric had fallen from his wife's mouth, he rearranged her skirt and stood up, carrying her in his arms. 

He knew they probably looked a mess, but the entrance to the tower was close enough to the West Wing that he wasn’t too concerned about running into anyone. When they got there, he laid his wife down on the bed and helped her to undress. By the time he had slipped her into her nightgown, she was asleep. He tucked her in and joined her after peeling off his own clothing. As Adam drifted off, he felt at peace. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how my head produced this, but I hope you enjoyed it. Also, if you guessed that Belle is pregnant, congrats! You're correct. She knows, but she'll wait to tell Adam until a time when her brain isn't mush. 
> 
> P.S. I realize that a lot of the dangerous drop-offs in the 2017 version of the castle are historically-accurate architecture, but here I’ve decided that at least some of the railings and walls had simply crumbled away due to the progression of the curse.


	5. The Carriage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few days before their wedding, Belle takes advantage of some private time with Adam to try something new.

Adam hummed happily as Belle snuggled closer against his side on the carriage seat.

They had been at their wits’ end with wedding preparations for the past several months. Then, exactly two weeks before the big day, they had gone to the meeting room after breakfast to see Cogsworth as usual, but they had been met with a surprise.

Cogsworth had greeted them with an uncharacteristically bright smile. Belle, usually the most clever and observant member of the household, had been too drained to notice the telling twinkle in his eye. She had tried to return the smile, but it had come out closer to a grimace. The old man had laughed and informed them that he had no wedding decisions for them to make, and no political work, either.

On the contrary, he had ordered them to visit their friend the Marquis of Mirambeau for at least several days in order to regain some of their sanity. He had informed them that their things were already being packed up by the maids, and a carriage was being readied.

In his most dramatic and sleep-deprived moments, Adam still thought he might cry with gratitude at how amazingly well his staff could run the household in his absence, and at how much they all genuinely cared about him and his beloved Belle. Everyone who was involved in wedding preparations had agreed that it would be good for them to have some time together, away from the chaos before the big day.

The excursion had done its job. The carriage ride from their castle to Gabe’s chateau was only a day’s journey. It had been a beautiful spring morning as they set out, and Belle had loved seeing more of the countryside with its vineyards and meadows. They had slept soundly in the chateau that night (in separate guest rooms, regrettably).

The rest of their time in Mirambeau had been just as refreshing. April flowers were just starting to bloom in the Marquis’ garden, and Belle now had a radiant glow from the sunshine. They had worn simple clothes so that they could explore more of the town without being bothered, and Belle had marveled at the architecture. Adam had mostly marveled at Belle.

Just before they left to return home, Gabe announced that he had found something that had belonged to his late grandfather, and he thought Belle would appreciate it the most. He would be following them to Villeneuve in a couple of days to attend the wedding, but he wanted to give it to her right away.

“Consider it an early wedding present.”

Adam had figured it would be something simple that Gabe just didn’t have use for, but the gift turned out to be a beautiful tool chest. Clearly crafted for a wealthy artisan, it was elaborately carved and fitted with mechanisms that turned it into somewhat of a puzzle box, allowing it to open up into various drawers and pockets. The outside of the box was just as stunning. Nearly every surface was painted with detailed roses and symbols that made Adam wonder if Gabe’s family hadn’t also tangled with magic at some point.

Belle had squealed. There was no other word for it.

Upon seeing her reaction to the gift, Adam was ashamed to admit that he had pouted. He had made serious progress with his jealousy and feelings of inferiority since Gabe’s first visit so many months ago, but still! He had been courting Belle for nearly a year. He knew very well that she had all sorts of odds and ends strewn across a work station in her East Wing suite and several other surfaces and cupboards across the castle. Heaven knows that more than one intimate session on the table in the library had been interrupted by Belle carefully moving things out of their way. And on top of all of that, he had more money and more connections than Gabe. He easily could have commissioned something of this sort. Why hadn’t _he_ thought of it?

Belle, ever the intuitive woman, had caught on to Adam’s mood as soon as her initial burst of excitement had subsided. She had laughed kindheartedly and pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

Adam was yanked out of the memory by the feeling of Belle’s finger tracing treacherously close to where the outline of his length was just barely visible through his trousers.

He felt himself begin to harden, and he groaned. He couldn’t bring himself to ask her to stop. How much trouble could they get up to in a carriage, anyway?

“How long do you think we have until we get home?” There was something in Belle’s tone that suggested mischief, and to Adam’s utter embarrassment, his body seemed to sense it, too.

He glanced out of the window to look for landmarks. Seeing none, he checked his pocket watch.

“Only about an hour, I suppose. We’re probably in our own farmland now.”

His answer brought a teasing smile to her face, and she trailed her fingertips directly over his now prominent bulge. Adam inhaled sharply, but he didn’t dare move a muscle. He wasn’t sure whether he was glad that they were in such a small, private space, or whether he wanted to fling himself out the carriage door.

Belle was quiet for a minute, but he knew that whatever she said next would be his undoing. He could tell that she was thinking hard. Probably plotting his demise.

“Adam?”

“Yes, my dear?” His voice most certainly did _not_ squeak as her thumb brushed firmly across his length through his clothing.

“Have you ever... _done_ anything in a carriage?”

Good Lord.

Despite his arousal, Adam cringed slightly at the question, though much less than he had the first time she had asked him such a thing. He had chosen to be an open book with her about his past, and she didn’t seem to mind his past experience and lifestyle. However, he was still working through his fears that something he shared would finally lower her opinion of him.

“Not anything worth speaking of, no. I didn’t do much serious courting. Rarely was I alone with a woman for a long journey.”

Belle looked thoughtful.

“I suppose certain activities would be rather uncomfortable in such a small space, anyway.”

Adam felt dizzy at the mere suggestion.

“It wasn’t so much that. It’s a bit too...public for my taste. People could see. The coachman would hear.”

“Let’s say the carriage was going through farmland.” She shot a meaningful glance out the window. “And what if both parties were very quiet?” Adam swallowed. He was starting to get the feeling that Belle had been planning this.

When he didn’t say anything, she continued.

“There’s something I would like to try.”

He was embarrassed by the way his body reacted to her simple words despite their lack of specificity, and he shifted in his seat.

Belle left his side and sat down across from him. She slid to one end of the bench and then the other, latching the windows shut and pulling the curtains closed.

“There. Now even if there’s anyone on the road, they can’t see in. All that’s left to worry about is Claude hearing. Will you allow me to try something?”

“Anything your heart desires.” The words came out against his better judgment.   

Belle suddenly slid to the floor of the carriage between his legs, and Adam’s jaw dropped.

“What are you doing?!”

“Will you let me?”

He scrambled to think of a reason why she shouldn’t continue.

“You really want to do _that_ for the first time kneeling on the filthy floor of a carriage on a bumpy road?”

“Yes.”

Well, then he was out of excuses. He would have to be honest.

“Belle, my love, I’ve never actually...”

He paused, unsure of how to phrase it politely. She rubbed his knees and waited patiently for him to continue.  

“I’m sure this comes as a surprise, given what you know, but I’ve never let anyone do that for me before.”

“Hmm. What made it different from other things?”

Adam ran his hands through his hair anxiously, trying to think of a way to explain.

“It seemed like such an unbalanced act. I had no way of knowing who was being pressured by family members to win my favor. I never did anything against anyone’s will, or anything like that, but men were always throwing their daughters and their unmarried sisters at me. I didn’t think I would be able to enjoy something so subservient.”

Belle looked confused. Scared that she might be judging him for engaging with them in _any_ way if he had possessed those doubts, he started to blabber.

“I...well, without getting into details, it was easy enough to tell during _other_ acts whether they really wanted to be there or not, even if they wouldn’t say so when I asked...I sent more than one person away over the years. But I didn’t think it would be so easy to pay attention if they did _that..._ ”

She interrupted him before he could get himself too worked up.

“You really weren’t all that bad, were you.” It wasn’t a question.

“Not in that way. Never in that way.”

Belle looked at him in wonder. She gave him that look a lot, and he couldn’t understand why. She had apparently been thinking the opposite of what he had feared. He was looking forward to a lifetime of getting to know her mind better.

“May I?” In contrast to what she was asking to do, her voice was sweet.

“Yes.” His voice was little more than a whisper as he realized the strength of the trust between them. He had no reservations about her doing this, now that she understood that he was new to it and why he had refrained with other people. He knew with absolute certainty that she would always let him know if she didn’t wish to continue.

He had answered all of her questions about the many things that people could get up to behind closed doors, but he had always been very careful to make it clear that he would never expect her to do anything in particular, or even anything at all. He knew, then, that this was entirely her own plan. And while he couldn’t understand her obvious excitement over doing this for him, he wasn’t about to question it any further. He could see that she was enjoying the idea of being the first and only person to give him this. If his pleasure was her desire, then so be it.

“This is the only rule: if you make a noise that’s loud enough for Claude to hear, I’ll stop.”

Adam shuddered at the prospect of their aging, stuffy coachman hearing the noises that he usually made whenever Belle brought him to completion.

“That’s probably for the best. Just...go slowly, please.”

Adam watched her unbutton his trousers, and he immediately felt his body respond. He suddenly realized that if he had visual stimulation in addition to the sensations, their fun would be over in an embarrassingly short amount of time. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back.

First, Belle used her hand to bring him to full hardness. They had done this part enough times now that she was familiar with his anatomy and his preferences. Adam’s breathing was staggered as Belle gently teased him the way she knew he loved.

He could tell when she was satisfied that he was ready, and he braced himself for what would come next. As he had requested, Belle started out slowly. She gripped his base firmly with her hand, and then he felt her press a chaste kiss to the tip of him. Adam’s eyes were still closed, but the mental image and the brief touch were enough to make him whine. He remembered Belle’s rule and clamped his mouth shut. 

Belle trailed her lips down his underside. She stopped there and nuzzled her nose against the hair at the base of him, sighing contentedly.

Adam felt like he was already losing his mind. Apparently, slow was much more intense than he had anticipated.

Belle’s tongue darted out against the vein, and Adam tried to make his body go limp to avoid convulsing. His head lolled onto his shoulder.

She traced meaningless shapes against him with her tongue, gradually making her way back upwards. He allowed himself to open his eyes and watch her progress. When she reached his head, she purposefully turned her head sideways and opened her mouth to suck on the sensitive bulge. Adam banged his head against the wall of the carriage and opened his mouth in a silent cry.

She became more adventurous, then, licking and sucking as she used one hand to pump whatever part of him wasn’t being tortured by her mouth. Adam took deep breaths to keep himself quiet. He ran his fingers through Belle’s hair, being careful not to guide her movements.

He felt her pause for a moment, and his breath caught in anticipation. When her mouth touched him again, he felt a sharper sensation that was surprisingly pleasant. She was _nibbling._

Adam’s eyes flew open, and his arms flailed comically as he sat up.

“Where did you learn _that?!”_ His voice was nearly a shout.

Belle stopped, as she had said she would. She tilted her head up at him and raised her eyebrows.

He panted and lowered his voice. “I could have been talking about anything. I’m sure Claude will think nothing of it. Please continue. Please, _please...”_

Belle’s eyes glossed over with arousal at the needy tone of his voice. They stared at each other for a moment, and the intensity made his chest feel tight in the best way. In just a handful of nights, they would be free to share themselves with each other however they wanted.

Next, Belle spent several minutes simply sliding him in and out of her mouth, with no extra fanfare. Her mouth never completely left him, though. Every time her lips came up to his tip, she increased the suction around his head, and Adam’s breath hitched.

Her movements were slow and measured, and she seemed to be focusing on learning to take more of him into her mouth. Adam found himself clenching the muscles of his thighs in rhythm with her strokes, though he managed to keep himself from thrusting upward. He realized that he was instinctually mimicking the way that he would move when he was finally inside a certain other part of her. He whimpered as he allowed himself to imagine that he was already there, and he bit his lip to muffle the sound. Belle paused for a moment, but decided to allow it.

Just when he thought he had himself under control, her free hand found his sac where it was still tucked into his underclothes.

It was only then that he realized the rule wasn’t just for practicality. Belle had meant it as a game. She was challenging him.

And she was winning. He was drowning. With her mouth and both of her hands stroking the most sensitive parts of his body, that was the best description he could think of for what he was feeling. Some delirious part of his mind tried to convince him that he really was drowning, because otherwise, he just knew that he was going to open his mouth and cry out again and again.

At some point, Adam started to slip sideways on the seat, and he couldn’t make his arms work well enough to right himself. Belle paused and helped him lie down on the bench with a giggle, but she didn’t give him time to regain himself. As soon as he was settled, she rose up on her knees and bent over him to continue. The change in angle caused a new wave of lust to crawl up his spine, and he shivered.

One of his legs was necessarily hanging off of the bench, and Belle ran her hand along the inside of his thigh as her mouth continued to drive him insane. Despite the fact that the fabric of his trousers still separated her hand from his leg, the additional contact was overwhelming. It wasn’t long before she increased the range of her touch and discovered that the new position gave her better access to his sac. Adam threw his arm over his face as he whimpered again.

With her other hand, Belle pushed his shirt up and traced his hip bones. She had accidentally discovered how much he loved being touched there when his shirt had come untucked during one of their very first heated moments. She had taken advantage of it ever since.

At that, Adam could feel himself rushing towards his climax. He tried to warn her, but the words came out garbled. He wanted to grab his handkerchief for her to use, but his arms felt heavy.

Somehow, Belle understood, and she removed her mouth from him just long enough to tell him that she wanted to continue to the end.

He gaped at her. He had no objections on his own behalf, but he found it hard to imagine that she could actually want that.  

From that point on, everything felt like wave after wave of indistinguishable and nearly unbearable pleasure. Adam shut his eyes tightly as he tried to process it. He was barely able to tell the exact moment when his climax actually began. He didn’t have enough awareness of his surroundings to know if Belle was struggling with her plan, but he trusted that she would stop if it was too much for her.

She brought him down from his climax gently, and he felt peaceful as her hands wandered over his body, soothing him as he continued to tremble. When she fixed his clothing and fastened his trousers, he finally opened his eyes.

She looked a bit startled, but not distressed or disgusted. That was a good sign.

Somehow, he had the presence of mind to realize that she could probably do with a drink of water. He fished around in her bag for her canteen and offered it to her.

She grabbed it from him eagerly. Adam chuckled, but he had to look away when she pressed her lips to the canteen and took a drink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took some time off from this to participate in the 30 Days challenge last month. Thank you to those who read it! I've never written on a schedule like that before. It was a lot of fun!

**Author's Note:**

> The title means "Nights Under the Moon" to complement the song Days in the Sun.


End file.
